The Ultimate Guide to Local SEO: Boost Your Local Visibility
SEO is very important for getting good traffic in websites to show up on Google. But there are many businesses that don’t care about the traffic from the whole world or from the entire country. They just need good traffic from the city or area they are serving. That means, they want to receive good traffic from the specific area where they are operating. If anyone searches for something related to their business in that particular area, they want their business to reach that audience. To promote such businesses, we take the help of local SEO.
What is Local SEO?
Local SEO, or Local Search Engine Optimization, means promoting a business in such a way that its visibility increases in the local market, in the area where it is located. If I talk about range, it is approximately within a 10 km radius. For example, if you have a coaching institute or if you provide school coaching and someone searches for "coaching for class 12" or "coaching for class 10" in a 10 km radius of your business, your business should show up on top.
There are three types of businesses:
1. Local Businesses: These are businesses that operate only in their local area. Examples include cafes, grocery stores, salons, schools, and coaching centers. Their main focus is on attracting local customers.
2. Non-Local or Online Businesses: These businesses don’t depend on local markets. They operate online or serve customers in other cities or countries. Local marketing plays a small role (about 10-20%) for them. Most of their promotion is done through global or international SEO.
3. Local and Global Businesses: These businesses target both local and global audiences. They serve people in their area while also offering services to those in other cities or countries. To do this, they use local marketing to reach nearby customers and global marketing to connect with a bigger audience.
So now, we understand that businesses of the first and third type need local marketing. It has been proven that if you strengthen your website’s general SEO and have a strong local presence, then your general SEO will also improve because your local SEO will empower the algorithm through expertise, authority, and trustworthiness.
Why local SEO is important?
Local SEO means increasing the visibility of a business in the local market, in the area where it is located. So, if we talk about why local SEO or local marketing is important then the first reason is that over 90% of users who use the internet search for local businesses or stores online. If you haven’t boosted your business locally, you are seriously lacking behind. Another reason why you should consider local marketing is that it increases customer loyalty and trust. If a business is present online, customers will feel more secure and trustful when engaging with it. For example, if you are looking to make a large purchase or use a service, you would want to ensure that the business is trustworthy. You might search online to check its credibility. Local SEO helps you build that trust. It also gives you a competitive advantage. If your competitor has been in the market for years but doesn’t have an online presence, local SEO will help you outshine them. Local SEO also supports your general SEO by improving your website’s ranking globally if your local presence and reviews are strong.
Introduction to Local Business Ranking Factors
Do you know that to define the ranking of local businesses, many ranking factors are considered? For example, if I am in a place and I search for 'salon near me', you will find many businesses and a listing will appear, but which business will come first, which second, and which third, meaning what their ranking will be, for this many ranking factors are defined.
Let’s start with the first ranking factor: Relevance.As marketers, there's not much we can do about this factor. For example, if someone types "male salon near me," what are they looking for? They want a salon that offers services for men. So, if you have a salon that only provides services for women, your business won’t show up in those search results. If it does, it will show up lower than the men's salons. If your business doesn’t match what the person is looking for, or if it’s not directly related to their search, your ranking will be lower. So, what can we do? The best thing we can do is to clearly mention all the services you offer and the products you sell in your profile.
The second ranking factor is a complete profile, which is completely in your control. When you create a profile on any listing site, like Google, make sure to fill out every section. Include your keywords, and don’t leave anything incomplete. A complete profile helps improve your ranking, while a half-finished profile won’t give you much benefit.
The third ranking factor is NAP, which stands for Name, Address, and Phone Number. These need to be correctly listed in your profile. I know some people avoid adding their phone number because they don’t want to get too many calls, but it’s really important. When I search for a local business, I always look for the phone number first, even before checking the website. Your address should be clear and accurate, and your business name should be correct as well.
The fourth ranking factor is Verified Listing. When you list your business, make sure it gets verified. Each platform has its own way of verifying listings, but it’s an important step for ranking.
The next factor is popularity. This can be measured in different ways. For example, the number of people who physically visit your business is a sign of popularity. You may get a message from Google asking you to rate a business after you visit. How do they know you were there? It’s because your location is tracked through your phone. When you visit a place, Google can detect it. The more people visit your business, the more popular it seems. Another way to show popularity is through ratings and reviews. So, focus on getting good reviews and making your business more popular.
The next ranking factor is Distance, which we can’t control. For example, if someone is far from your business and searches for "women’s clothing near me," your business might not show up first. The closest business will appear higher in the results.These are just a few of the ranking factors, but there are many more.
Local SEO is perfect for businesses that don’t want to invest heavily in digital marketing but need to increase their reach in a particular city or area. Local SEO is important for businesses that work on-site and for those looking to reach as many people as possible in a particular area or city. It helps your business show up in search results when someone nearby is looking for what you offer. By making sure your business information is complete and accurate, getting good reviews, and having a verified listing, you can improve your chances of being seen by more local customers. Local SEO also helps build trust with potential customers and gives you an advantage over competitors who aren’t focused on local marketing. Whether your business serves just your area or the world, local SEO is a powerful way to grow and succeed.
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